Brake service lesson learned

B

BananaFred

Well-Known Member
Tried to bleed brakes... Got mineral oil on calipers. Cut braking effectiveness in half (at best).
Annoyed me endlessly.
Out of frustration i pulled the rotors and pads...baked them at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Seems to have done the job. Much better.
 
BananaFred said:
Tried to bleed brakes... Got mineral oil on calipers. Cut braking effectiveness in half (at best).
Annoyed me endlessly.
Out of frustration i pulled the rotors and pads...baked them at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Seems to have done the job. Much better.
Click to expand...

LBS
 
BananaFred said:
Tried to bleed brakes... Got mineral oil on calipers. Cut braking effectiveness in half (at best).
Annoyed me endlessly.
Out of frustration i pulled the rotors and pads...baked them at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Seems to have done the job. Much better.
Click to expand...
Want to be even more frustrated? Baking those pads probably won't work and the squeal will return until you replace the pads.
 
A good question is how much brake pads absorb oil and if soaking them in a solvent like acetone can dissolve the oil that has been soaked. The oven can burn the oil off sure but guessing it leaves a hardened film from the burned oil that needs to be worn off also.

I'd probably leave them in acetone for a day then wear off a fraction of a mm with some 80 grit.
 
Use a bleed block next time. Make sure it’s all tightened up before putting the pads back in.
But yeah, the squeaking will come back. Pads are like little rock sponges that absorb the oil. Once they’re contaminated, they’re shot.
 
BananaFred said:
Tried to bleed brakes... Got mineral oil on calipers. Cut braking effectiveness in half (at best).
Annoyed me endlessly.
Out of frustration i pulled the rotors and pads...baked them at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Seems to have done the job. Much better.
Click to expand...

If you would've taken the pads out first like every tutorial on the planet shows, this whole thing could've been avoided.
 
Ironjunk said:
A good question is how much brake pads absorb oil and if soaking them in a solvent like acetone can dissolve the oil that has been soaked. The oven can burn the oil off sure but guessing it leaves a hardened film from the burned oil that needs to be worn off also.

I'd probably leave them in acetone for a day then wear off a fraction of a mm with some 80 grit.
Click to expand...


Enough that if you bring it to a shop, they'll replace them so there are no "problems".

You could theoretically douse them in cleaner, light them on fire, and keep going until it's burned off. No guarantee that they'll ever work right after it (see above), but it's technically possible.
 
Karate Monkey said:
Enough that if you bring it to a shop, they'll replace them so there are no "problems".

You could theoretically douse them in cleaner, light them on fire, and keep going until it's burned off. No guarantee that they'll ever work right after it (see above), but it's technically possible.
Click to expand...
Does this work with resin pads as well? I always assumed it was only doable with metal pads...
 
Maybe. They're designed to resist high heat.

They might also ruin them, depending on your discretion. That's why shops will generally just scrub your rotor/replace pads.
 
BananaFred said:
Hate to disappoint you all...but i went for a long ride today and the brakes were great. Night and day difference. They went from squealing like crazy (and bordering on dangerous) to dead silent and powerful.
Click to expand...
So the baking of rotors and pads worked? Might give that a try for one of the bikes, but not sure if it's oil contamination
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom